Flocked articles are used in a wide variety of applications. For example, flocked articles are used as patches, transfers, molded objects, and the like. Generally, flocked articles are less expensive than embroidered articles to manufacture and the flock provides a “plusher” feel to the article relative to embroidered articles.
Even with flocked articles, there are varying degrees of plushness. Plushness refers to the resilience, tactile sensation, or dimension of the fiber coating and is generally a combination of one or more of the following characteristics: fiber type (e.g., durometer, softness or hardness of the plastic, resilience of the fiber itself); fiber diameter (e.g., denier or decitex); fiber density (e.g., grams per square meter); fiber cut length (e.g., mm or thousandths of an inch); evenness of the cut (unevenly cut fibers, flocked together, actually can feel softer than uniformly cut fibers); depth into the adhesive to which the fibers are planted or situated; angle of fibers in the adhesive (with a normal orientation being most desirable); uniformity of angle of fibers in the adhesive (whether most of the fibers are oriented in the same direction or in diverse directions); softness of the adhesive base resin (e.g., a base resin that has been foamed with air is generally softer); and evenness of adhesive coating (e.g., thicker or thinner in areas). Plushness is sometimes further characterized by the flock's resistance or lack of resistance to touch or to a force, the fiber's resistance to bending and yielding, and also to the fiber's slipping characteristics (e.g., the longitudinal movement along a fiber with lack of resistance—easy slipping, for example, can make a soft fiber feel “wet”). More plush flocked articles generally have a higher perceived value to buyers.
As important as the plushness of a flocked article may be, it is equally desirable for the flock to have an attractive appearance. Conventional multicolor plush direct-flocked heat transfers are typically made using multicolor “full dull” or “grand mat” type fibers, which by definition include at least about 1 wt % light dispersants, such as titanium dioxide. As will be appreciated, light dispersants are normally used to diffuse the light to eliminate unsightly and uneven shading, mottling, or shadows from light passing through the fibers. Multicolor flock products normally use a white adhesive backing that tends to reflect light, accentuate uneven characteristics, and show through the fibers somewhat or influence them with light reflecting off the adhesive and passing back through the fibers. A medium blue bright fiber, for example, would appear lighter and, as one's viewing angle shifted, one could see evidence of shading and/or pigment colors blocking the light viewed through the different fiber densities. The shading represents generally a variation in the amount of light reflected and passing back through the fiber. As a result, the fibers appear to have a dull finish and do not reflect light in contrast to the bright, light-reflective sheen that is typically seen on embroidery threads and which is associated with a high quality decoration, i.e. similar to the difference between frosted or matt glass and clear glass.
In addition to these drawbacks, the adhesives of conventional flocked articles are typically colored differently than the flock fibers themselves (with most adhesives being white as described above) and thus do not enhance or amplify the fiber color and are visually unappealing. Therefore, the off-colored adhesive must be overcome by the flock fiber colors. To adequately conceal the adhesive color, manufacturers have used relatively high flock densities, which have increased operating costs and impacted detrimentally the “feel” of the flocked surface. However, even with higher flock densities, the wear resistance of such flocked articles can be limited. As flock fibers are dislodged during use, the adhesive will be revealed, destroying the visual appeal of the article.
Manufacturers have attempted to use matching color latex adhesive behind a single color image (e.g., black latex or gold latex behind black flock or gold flock) to enhance the color of the flocked article and address the aesthetic problems associated with using an off-color adhesive. Color matching of the backing adhesive and flock fibers has had limited efficacy, however, because the use of “full dull” flock fibers still fails to provide a highly desirable brilliance or sheen to the fibers.
There is thus a need to provide a flocked article having a brilliant sheen and appearance, a high degree of plushness and wear resistance, while using a lower flock density compared to existing articles to enhance the soft touch without detracting from the appearance.